


Miles of Jagged Lines

by tsurai



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Angst, Circle of Magi, M/M, Mages and Templars, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-17
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-12-16 10:55:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11827272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsurai/pseuds/tsurai
Summary: Prompt of the week in 500 words or less: Watching the person you love with someone else. For the Sadness Appreciation Society weekly.





	Miles of Jagged Lines

**Author's Note:**

  * For [little_abyss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/little_abyss/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Easy](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11819700) by [little_abyss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/little_abyss/pseuds/little_abyss). 



> For the endlessly-inspiring Aby.

It is late in the evening, easy enough to sink back into the shadows of the nearly-empty room. Even as a child Orsino had a talent for hiding, and if not for magic he thinks the life of a thief would have suited him well.

He often eschews his office – that damnable space right across from Meredith – for a library alcove just far enough out of sight that even the most alert Templar’s gaze tends to skip over it. Only the presence of a table taking up most of the space prevents it from being a refuge for the forbidden trysts of which his fellow mages are so fond.

 _No, not_ fond _. Desperate, each of them always reaching for a connection, clinging to even the smallest scrap of affection_ , he thinks wearily, staring unseeing at the stack of parchment before him. He can’t blame them, can never fault those under his care for seeking solace in each other, no matter how dangerous it may be.

It is not enough merely to be safe, never enough without some reason to get up in the morning, even something as insignificant as a shared smile between two mages passing in the halls. Orsino knows this. Knows that some days, he lacks it.

A noise at the entrance to the library, the familiar clank of steel as two Templars walk through the door, just in his line of sight. Orsino doesn’t stiffen, far too practiced at keeping his face at an ease that belies the sudden roil of emotion in his breast. Even if he did not know their gaits by heart, the bitter bark of laughter that rings out in response to the something the Knight-Captain says would be enough to give the two of them away.

In an alcove opposite him, Enchanter Nieves buries his head further in a book, attempting to escape notice as Raleigh Samson and Cullen Rutherford stop shoulder-to-shoulder and cast their gazes around the room. Orsino does not move, meets Samson’s gaze head on when the man’s eyes pass over him, their weight tangible despite the helmet that shades his face from scrutiny.

Perhaps Orsino imagines the pause, the way the man’s head tilts the slightest fraction and sends something jagged and hot streaking through Orsino’s gut. Then Samson turns to the Knight-Captain, his words muffled enough by metal that Orsino can’t make them out from his position.

His hands curl inward, crumpling parchment when Rutherford nods and claps Samson on the shoulder.

Samson, who once passed letters for a mage so in love he risked everything for a few words and a paper bird. Samson, who once listened out-of-sight as Orsino conspired with another to rebel against the Knight-Commander and merely pointed them both to a more private alcove.

 _Don’t_ , he thinks, trying to tear his eyes away as the Templars leave the room without another glance. _Don’t do this to yourself._ Again, in quiet desperation _, don’t let him be a reason to get up_.

But he knows it’s far too late for that.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a [tumblr](http://tsuraiwrites.tumblr.com/). Also if you liked this, join our [Discord](https://discord.gg/3AJAz9R).


End file.
